


Just Say the Word

by Laura_Raptor



Category: Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Adult Content, F/M, Interrupted, One Shot, Romance, Sex, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-24
Updated: 2015-01-24
Packaged: 2018-03-08 20:17:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3222065
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laura_Raptor/pseuds/Laura_Raptor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A steamy one shot with a female mage Inquisitor and Commander Cullen. Written so the protagonist can be of any race. </p>
<p>The Inquisitor and her Commander are looking to relax after a long day on the political battlefield. Too bad another mage keeps butting his head in.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Just Say the Word

Her back ached as she made her way towards the undercroft. Not a fortnight earlier had Dagna discovered the long unused entrance to the abandoned hot springs that ran below Skyhold. Someone long before them, maybe the elves, had carved large tubs for bathing right into the rocks and now the people of their keep had a place to bath and relax.

It wasn’t like her to request a part of the keep be cordoned off for a time, but she’d spent all day on a most uncomfortable throne and she needed time to relax, to unwind, and to ease her aching muscles. All she wanted was a bath, and with a word, the space was hers alone.

The day’s events weren’t the last of what she had to fight with. No, it was just the beginning. To make things worse, Josephine had taken it upon herself to invite representatives to Skyhold to discuss matters now that they’d dealt with the Corypheus problem.

Putting a stop to Corypheus was supposed to be the hard part, but compared to the politics she now had to play as Inquisitor, she almost longed for the days where there was a hole in the sky. Fighting a bad guy, killing him, that was straight forward, easy. Point her in a direction and she’d shoot fireballs until they won. Easy.

Politics required a steadier hand than she was used to.

It also required that she look the part. Gone were the days where she could get by in wearing the coats and arms she wore to battle. Now, as Josephine so elegantly explained, she was required to look the part of a political leader.

But for now, she could relax.

“Your worship,” a young woman greeted her as she approached the door. Several young women who had arrived with the scores of refugees looking for the Inquisitions help had been hired on to help around the castle. This one, a girl by the name of Xanthe, was working the baths, along with a young elf that she hadn’t gotten the name of. Not yet, at least.

“Are the baths empty?” she asked as they led her down to the hot springs below the keep.

“Yes, your worship,” Xanthe replied. “Lady Montilyet informed us of your need for some privacy.”

“Thank you,” the Inquisitor said as she stretched her arms overhead. Right now, she just needed her privacy, save the two girls who would stay and ensure if she needed anything, she would have it immediately.

Although, it might be seen as inappropriate if she asked them to go fetch her the one thing she really wanted for her bath.

She’d considered informing Cullen of her plans for relaxing, but the only chance she had led her to find him with a swarm of soldiers surrounding the desk he worked at. Though he’d offered her a glance, and just a hint of a smile, stress weighed heavy on him, too.

Josephine was the one who had to ensure the keep appeared the way the nobles of Orlais expected it too, but it was up to Cullen to ensure their safety. Over the coming weeks, Josephine had planned many visits by many powerful people, and that meant that they needed to take extra precautions with safety.

“Let me help you with that,” Xanthe’s soft voice said as the Inquisitor began to unlace her breaches. Tomorrow would require she dress in silks and lace, but that was not today.

“I’ll be fine,” she assured the soft spoken girl, while the elf ran to fetch a robe and some wine. It was nice that the girls wanted to help, but right now she wanted to feel more like herself than some lady who needed doting on.

In the empty baths, she didn’t bother with modesty. The two girls who worked there had been told by Josephine, and then again by Leliana, that their job was to be discrete. She had no worries about them seeing her nude. All she cared about was the hot water, with its natural salts, and how good it felt as she stepped into the large pool.

In the heat of the water, nothing could bother her.

With only the light of the candles that surrounded the large bath that was carved right into the floor, she could close her eyes and let go. She could just be herself, a girl with a staff, and not some woman who had helped save the world. She didn’t have to fight with nobles who wanted her favor in one hand, and her head in the other. She was just herself.

It was the door to the baths that brought her out of her near slumber. Disappointment and a rash bolt of anger shot through her, at least until who she saw who had interrupted her.

“Commander,” she found herself purring as she moved forward in the pool of hot water. She was nude, and the water was clear enough that he could see all of her.

It was exactly what they both wanted.

“Inquisitor,” he greeted her, the corner of his lip turning up just slightly. Despite everything, they knew how to make each other smile.

The two girls who had entered with her giggled, but excused themselves to leave the Inquisitor and her lover in peace. It had been a long day for both of them, and together they could wash it all away.

“How did you know I was here?” she asked as Cullen began to undo the clasp that held the cloak that covered his shoulders.

“Josephine was kind enough to inform me,” he said while his eyes watched her. “And I thought you might like some company.”

“Yes,” she said as she floated across the water to be closer to him. “But only yours.”

It was the right answer and he definitely approved. In the flickering candlelight, Cullen worked at the straps of his armor, removing it piece by piece until he was as nude as his lover. He was a sight to behold, scars and all, and he was already showing his excitement.

“Thinking about this got me through today,” she admitted as he climbed into the hot pool with her.

“That difficult?” he asked as he pulled her wet body into his muscular arms. Easily, he used a finger to tilt her chin up so their lips could meet, and her worries truly washed away as he kissed her there in the bath.

Their peace didn’t last long, though. Another voice interrupted them during their private moment and Cullen’s cheeks instantly reddened as he moved to cover himself.

“Nothing I haven’t seen before,” Dorian laughed as he began to pull off his clothing at the side of the tub.

“How did you know we were down here?” she asked as she warmed the magic in her hands. Steam rose from the tub and covered most of what Dorian had no desire to see from her, and all of what he wanted a look at from Cullen.

Dorian laughed at that. “Josephine told me, of course.”

Cullen’s sly smile had turned into a scowl, and he couldn’t stop himself from saying, “Did she not mention that our lady wanted some privacy?”

Dorian, always up for banter, wouldn’t let that one rest. “Then what are you doing down here, Commander?”

“You know very well,” she laughed as she splashed some of the water up at her fellow mage.

“Well, you can’t hog the baths to yourself,” Dorian said as he let his breaches drop and even the steam she had created couldn’t cover everything. With an awkward raise of his hand, Cullen averted his gaze until Dorian had sat down in the pool, but she was willing to play his game. She kept looking.

“I thought I’d earned some quiet time,” she said with a soft shrug of her shoulders. “I didn’t get to spend all day in the library.”

“How is Varric’s latest book, by the way?” Cullen asked, no longer afraid to look at Dorian and jest with him now that the water was up to his chest.

“Har har,” Dorian shot back. “If you must know, I was doing some research on the family lines of our soon to be arriving guests. Josephine doesn’t need to be the only one with knowledge of who comes and goes from our cozy little keep.”

“Well, thank you,” she offered him then. It wasn’t like she had time to do such work.

“Getting nervous about having to court Josephine’s guests?” Dorian asked her then.

“I won’t claim I’m entirely comfortable with it,” she said with a heavy sigh.

Under the water, Cullen’s hand met her thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze of reassurance. “You’ll do fine,” he promised.

“I hope so,” she said as her eyes met the water. “I know we need this. With Corypheus gone, we need to know where the Inquisitions stands, and how others see us. I just don’t know how it’s going to go. You saw how poorly I did at the Winter Palace.”

“That wasn't exactly your fault,” Cullen reminded her.

“This is one of those rare occasions that I must agree with our commander,” Dorian said with a quick nod. “It isn’t easy to charm a court of vipers while you’re busy hunting an assassin.”

“Too bad they couldn't see it that way,” she sighed as her fingers intertwined with Cullen’s.

He squeezed her hand back and as his eyes met hers, it was like Dorian had never interrupted them at all. “We’ll make them see it that way,” he told her, his voice full of conviction and hope. Despite everything he’d been through, he still had hope and it was one of the things she loved about him.

“And I can see I’m about to be left out of the party,” Dorian said. “Don’t mind me, I’ll just let myself out.”

Cullen averted his eyes before Dorian even moved to step out of the tub, but at least Dorian had the consideration to turn around before he moved himself out of the steam. She’d already seen enough of him for one night, but he was the kind of man who would be relentless in his teasing if she showed any weakness.

“I’ll inform Josephine to be a little clearer of your privacy requirements,” Dorian said as he grabbed one of the lambs’ wool robes that had been left out. With him finally dressed, Cullen dared a glance and let out a soft sigh of relief to see the mage at least somewhat covered.

“Good-night, Dorian,” she said as he left the undercroft and it wasn’t until his footfalls grew quieter on the stairs that she really believed they’d finally get some time alone.

For a moment, she worried that their chance was gone. It had been days since she’d managed to find some time to get Cullen alone, and when they did get the opportunity, they were either too tired or busy to do more than collapse. Dorian’s interruption might have been the hammer that broke their one moment of peace.

But Cullen wasn’t ready to give up on their moment. “Where were we?” he asked her as he moved closer to her in the pool. 

He might have asked the question, but he wasn’t looking for an answer. Before she could even think about what to say, his hands were on her hips and pulling her into his lap.

The steam she had created to hide his manhood from Dorian’s gaze had hidden something from her as well. Between their last kiss and now, Cullen had stiffened and was already prepared for her.

“I’ve wanted this for a week,” he moaned into the crook of her neck before his lips began to dance across her skin. 

She found herself moaning back as her hands moved across his back. Her nails had been buffed by a woman Josephine had selected specifically for the job, but they were still long enough to gently scratch Cullen’s skin as his lips kissed between her breasts and then across them.

“Take me,” she moaned as she adjusted herself to straddle him.

Easily, he entered her. It had only been a few months, and a few rare stolen moments dappled across that time, but he already knew her body so well. With their bodies joined as one, they were no longer Inquisitor and Commander. Their titles didn't matter, nor did their duties.

They were lovers, and nothing more mattered when they were as one.

At first, with the water enveloping them, Cullen was soft and slow as he took her. He painted gentle kisses across her skin and his strong arms wrapped around her waist.

Soft was good, but only for a time. They had precious few moments alone together and she wanted all of what he had to give. He could be more than soft, and with a few deep moans, he quickly realized what it was that she wanted. What she needed.

Soon, the water of the hot bath was sloshing hard across the stone floor of the undercroft. The sound of the water only served to drive them both on and their own lack of attention to each other over the last few weeks proved their undoing.

She knew it was coming before it happened, but she didn’t care. She wanted him, all of him, and in that rare moment, he was raw and unbridled. The aura of control he was so careful to maintain fell and she saw a side of him no one else could imagine existed.

It was only for her.

“I’m sorry,” he moaned into her neck as his heart thudded in his chest. “I didn’t mean to…”

“I don’t mind,” she said as she kissed across his forehead.

He nuzzled her neck before he replied, “But you didn’t get to…”

He rarely finished those kind of sentences. Despite how strong he was on the battlefield, openly discussing sex was not something that Cullen Rutherford had much confidence in.

“It’s all right,” she assured him as she brought his lips up to meet hers for a change. “Besides, now you owe me.”

“Oh do I?” he purred back at her, his confidence returning. She’d learned very quickly that he enjoyed pleasuring her, and she was not one to complain about that fact.

“You definitely do,” she informed him. “I have a feeling I’m going to have a very rough day tomorrow. I know of a few ways you might help me relax after.”

When he looked up at her then, she saw his smile had bloomed in full. Not the polite one he reserved for entertaining nobles and guests, or the confident one used to bolster moral when it was needed.

No, it was a smile that was just for her. A strange mix of awe, confidence, and desire that made her knees weak whenever she got to see it. 

“Anything you wish of me,” he said as he kissed her once more. “Just say the word.”

**Author's Note:**

> I wrote this fic after finishing my first ever play through of DA:I this week. I won’t lie, romancing Cullen was my favorite part of the game. 
> 
> If you enjoyed my writing style, I do write novels under the name Helena Shaw!


End file.
